Howard Johnson By Wyndham Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $350K – $3.3M
- Disclosed sales
- partial, no system average
- SBA charge-off
- 0.0%
- on 23 loans
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Howard Johnson By Wyndham franchise requires a total initial investment of $350K – $3.3M, including a $35K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. The 2026 FDD on file does not yield a unit-revenue figure we can publish. SBA 7(a) loans show a 0.0% charge-off rate across 23 loans[1]. FranchiseVerdict grade: B (Above average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: low - issued within the last 12 months
Evidence: strong✓ Investment (Item 7)✓ Item 19 status✓ Units and owners (Item 20)✓ SBA loan coverage✓ Litigation (Item 3)✓ Financial statements (Item 21)✓ Franchisor identityhow this is scored5 of 5 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing.
Overview
- Investment
- $350K – $3.3M
- 18th pct Lodging
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Projection
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 3rd pct Lodging
- Units
- 133
- 51st pct Lodging
- SBA charge-off
- 0.0%
- % of SBA 7(a) loans not repaid · median varies by category
Quick verdict · Lodging · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Lodging median · No shading = within ±10% · Red = unfavorable by >10% · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Bottom line
- COSTTotal investment $350K – $3.3M including a $35K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSItem 19 reports operational metrics (ADR, Occupancy, RevPAR) rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable.
- RISKVerdict B (Above average), verdict score 64/100 (higher is better). SBA loan charge-off rate of 0.0% across 23 loans (well below the franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2025).
- GROWTHNegative: net -6 franchised outlets in the latest year (5 opened, 11 closed); 18 signed but not yet open (Item 20).
- LEGAL14 litigation matters disclosed in Item 3, higher than typical. Review the summary for patterns (franchisor-initiated vs. franchisee-initiated).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Howard Johnson International, Inc.
- Parent company
- Wyndham Hotel Group, LLC
- FDD Item 1, page 9 of the 2026 FDD
- Ultimate parent
- Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Inc.
- FDD Item 1, page 9 of the 2026 FDD
- CEO title
- President and Chief Executive Officer
- Geoff Ballotti
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- 22 Sylvan Way, Parsippany, New Jersey 07054
- Auditor
- Not specified in text excerpts reviewed
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $1.4B
- vs $1.4B prior year
Same owner · FDD Item 1, page 9
17 other brands on this site name Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Inc. as parent or ultimate parent in their own FDD.
- AmericInnA
- Arise Suites Extended Stay by WyndhamC
- Baymont Inn & SuitesA
- Days InnB
- Dazzler SelectC
- ECHO Suites Extended Stay by WyndhamB
- Hawthorn Extended Stay by WyndhamA
- La Quinta by WyndhamA
- Microtel Inn & Suites by WyndhamB
- RamadaC
- Registry Collection HotelsC
- TRYP by WyndhamB
- Trademark Collection by WyndhamA
- WaterWalk Extended Stay by WyndhamB
- Wingate by WyndhamB
- Wyndham GardenB
- Wyndham GrandB
Grouped by the owner's name as each filing prints it (this page: the 2026 FDD). Spelling variants of the same group may be listed apart; a brand is never grouped with an owner its filing does not name.
Overview
About
Franchisor of Howard Johnson and Howard Johnson by Wyndham economy-segment guest lodging facilities (hotels/inns)
- CEO
- Geoff Ballotti
- Headquarters
- NJ
- Founded
- 1990
- FDD year
- 2026
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 79% below the typical lodging franchise.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7
published investment is a conversion of an existing property. The same filing prices new construction separately at $8,975,135-$11,896,542.
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $35K | $35K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $130K | $196K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $185K | $3.1M |
| Total initial investment | $350K | $3.3M |
Source: Howard Johnson By Wyndham 2026 FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $350K – $3.3M
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $130K – $196K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $35K – $35K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $734 |
| Transfer fee | $35K |
| Renewal fee | $35K |
| Inventory (initial) | $223K – $244K |
What do units actually make?
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 19
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
No Item 19 revenue figure for Howard Johnson By Wyndham is on file. The return models need a revenue figure to start from, and the operating costs that turn gross sales into a profit are in no FDD. Enter your own and the calculator runs on your assumptions — nothing here is modelled until you do.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Howard Johnson By Wyndham unit return on the cash you put in?
Illustrative category typicals — not sourced to any filing, survey or sample. Replace them with figures from franchisee validation calls before you rely on the output.
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Your modelled return on total invested capital, before any debt financing.
—
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for annual revenue, COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
These models are for research and scenario planning only. Not investment advice. Actual results depend on your specific location, management, and market conditions. Consult a franchise attorney and accountant before signing any franchise agreement.
Item 19 · Source: 2026 FDD
Financial Performance
An occupancy metric, not unit revenue
- Item 19 type
- operational metrics (ADR, Occupancy, RevPAR)
- Sample size
- 60
- vs category median 98
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2026
- Disclosed in the 2026 filing, covering 2025
Compared against 175 Lodging brands
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Fee burden
5.0% royalty + 2.0% ad fund.
Disclosure
Item 19 reports operational metrics (ADR, Occupancy, RevPAR) rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable.
Source: FDD Item 19 financial performance representations and publicly filed FDD data. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Verify all figures with the franchisor and current franchisees before making any investment decision.
vs Lodging medians
How Howard Johnson By Wyndham Compares
Category median of published Lodging brands that report the figure; the middle half spans the 25th to 75th percentile and n counts the brands behind it. Medians are used because a few very large systems pull an average far from the typical brand. Revenue is disclosed gross sales, not profit.
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 133
- Opened
- 5
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 11
- Terminated
- 3
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 8.3%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 3
- Not renewed
- 0
- Reacquired
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Signed, not yet open
- 18
- 0.14 per open outlet · Item 20 Table 5
- Projected new
- 15
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 30 states with active franchisees
The Territory Map
Derived from franchisee contact records. Shows states with at least one current operator. Not where the franchisor is registered to sell new units (that data is re-extracting in a future refresh).
States derived from franchisee contact records (FDD Item 20). Shows states with at least one current operator on file. Full state registration data (Item 12) will appear on a future FDD refresh.
Where the owners are · Item 20 owner list
94 current owners across 30 states.
- CA 16
- NJ 10
- FL 8
- GA 8
- MA 7
- AZ 5
- MD 3
- NM 3
- NY 3
- PA 3
- TN 3
- CT 2
- +18 more states
Counts only, from the list the franchisor prints in Item 20; 3 entries carry no state. Names and phone numbers are for your own due diligence and are not shown here.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 23
- Loan volume
- $63.6M
- Median loan
- $2.6M
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 0.0%
- on 23 loans · rates vary by category · see methodology
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- 100.0%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 18
- Defaults
- 0
- Typical loan rate
- 6.2%
- avg rate to borrowers
- vs industry
- N/A
- NAICS 7211
- Jobs supported
- 278
- 0.4 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 13%
- top lender's share
Borrower mix: 18% went to startups / new businesses, 82% to established operators
Top lenders financing Howard Johnson By Wyndham franchisees
Showing 3 of 18 lenders. The full breakdown — every lender, state distribution, interest rates & risk ratings — is in the SBA Lending Report below.
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Lender network · 7(a) + 504
SBA Lending Report
Full lending analysis for Howard Johnson By Wyndham from SBA 7(a) FOIA data.
- Principal loss rate
- 0.0%
- Avg SBA guarantee
- 77%
- Avg interest rate
- 6.16%
- Lender concentration
- 13.0%
- Job velocity
- 0.4 per $100K
- Startup risk premium
- 0.0pp
- Jobs supported
- 278
Top SBA lendersTop lender holds 13% of loans
| # | Lender | Loans | Volume | Default % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | N/A | N/A | |
| 2 | 2 | N/A | N/A | |
| 3 | 2 | N/A | N/A | |
| 4 | 2 | N/A | N/A | |
| 5 | 1 | N/A | N/A |
Geographic failure vector
| State | Loans | Defaults | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| CACalifornia | 3 | 0 | 0.0% |
| TNTennessee | 3 | 0 | -- |
| AZArizona | 2 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FLFlorida | 2 | 0 | 0.0% |
| NCNorth Carolina | 2 | 0 | 0.0% |
| OROregon | 2 | 0 | 0.0% |
| TXTexas | 2 | 0 | -- |
| CTConnecticut | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| GAGeorgia | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| IAIowa | 1 | 0 | -- |
SBA 7(a) lending trend
Borrower profile
Source: SBA 7(a) + 504 FOIA loan-level data, matched by FranchiseVerdict
With a 0.0% charge-off rate across 23 loans, banks have historically viewed this brand favorably for lending.
What could kill this investment?
SBA loans charge off at 0.0% — 100% below the 16.0% national norm, i.e. lower lender-observed risk.
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 4, 8, 16, 21
Risk & Legal
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: the franchisor is a named party (defendant).
No pending litigation against the franchisor directly. Multiple cases against parent/affiliate WHR entities involving price-fixing class actions (IDeaS revenue management software), misleading hotel fees, and franchise agreement disputes. One resolved case (Lancs Hospitality) involved HJI. Franchisor was also plaintiff in resolved LuxUrban breach-of-contract matter.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Not specified in text excerpts reviewed
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Total revenue is parent-level: WHR's (Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Inc.) total net revenues of $1.429 billion per its consolidated statements of income for 2025, cited in Item 6. The Item 21/Exhibit D audited statements are WHR consolidated; the franchisor (Howard Johnson International, Inc.) does not file standalone statements, and the numeric statement tables were image-based and not extractable from this text.
ⓘ These are the parent company's consolidated financials (the parent guarantees the franchisor), not this brand's standalone results — the figure reflects the whole corporate group, not this brand alone.
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 7.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 15 years |
|---|---|
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Right of first refusalℹ | No |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Arbitration location | Morris County, NJ (non-binding mediation; non-exclusive venue) |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | NJ |
| Litigation count | 14 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No pending litigation against the franchisor directly. Multiple cases against parent/affiliate WHR entities involving price-fixing class actions (IDeaS revenue management software), misleading hotel fees, and franchise agreement disputes. One resolved case (Lancs Hospitality) involved HJI. Franchisor was also plaintiff in resolved LuxUrban breach-of-contract matter.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- On-the-job training
- 0 hrs
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Site selection
- Franchisee selects; franchisor approves
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- SynXis Property Hub or OPERA Cloud (Oracle)
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: SynXis Property Hub or OPERA Cloud (Oracle)
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
97 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Howard Johnson By Wyndham franchise?
The total investment to open a Howard Johnson By Wyndham franchise ranges from $350K – $3.3M, with an initial franchise fee of $35K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Howard Johnson By Wyndham franchise owners earn?
Item 19 of the Howard Johnson By Wyndham FDD discloses figures for part of the system but no single average across all outlets. These are gross sales figures, not profit; the Revenue section shows what the filing reports and on what basis. Item 20 of the FDD lists current and former franchisees; asking them directly is the standard way to fill this gap.
Who owns Howard Johnson By Wyndham?
Howard Johnson By Wyndham is franchised by Howard Johnson International, Inc.. Its parent company is Wyndham Hotel Group, LLC. The ultimate parent named in the FDD is Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Inc.. Source: FDD Item 1, 2026 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Howard Johnson By Wyndham FDD?
The FDD section where a franchisor may disclose financial performance of its outlets. Disclosure is optional and formats vary; figures are typically gross sales, which is revenue before expenses, not profit. FranchiseVerdict extracts these figures directly from the Howard Johnson By Wyndham FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Howard Johnson By Wyndham's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Howard Johnson By Wyndham has a charge-off rate of 0.0% across 23 loans, meaning 0.0% of franchise loans were charged off. Charge-off rates are one proxy for franchise risk, though they do not capture all closures. This data comes from FOIA-sourced SBA lending records.
How many Howard Johnson By Wyndham franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Howard Johnson By Wyndham has 133 total units in the United States, including 133 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 5 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Howard Johnson By Wyndham a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Howard Johnson By Wyndham as a B-grade franchise with a verdict score of 64 out of 100 (higher is better). The grade is a deterministic score built from six weighted dimensions — financial health, unit economics, unit growth, scale, legal, and transparency — then calibrated against SBA loan charge-off rates and FDD age. Transparency is one of the six, so a filing that discloses less scores lower on that dimension than one that discloses more. Our rating is based solely on publicly available FDD and government data; we recommend speaking with current franchisees before making any investment decision. This is not investment advice.
Data sourced from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) FOIA records. Not financial advice.
For franchisors
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Data extracted from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) loan disclosures (FOIA). This information is provided for research purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. Verify all figures with the franchisor's current Franchise Disclosure Document before making any investment decision.